Julia Fordham (born August 10, 1962, Portsmouth, England) is a singer-songwriter based in California. Her professional career started in the early 1980s, under the name "Jules Fordham," as a backing singer for the likes of Mari Wilson & the Wilsations and Kim Wilde. In 1988, she released her first album on Circa Records, Julia Fordham. The album, which contained a pair of UK top 40 singles, introduced her as a singer with considerable vocal range, and her deeply emotional lyrics endeared her to a small, committed audience.